BUILDING BRIGHT FUTURE
WHICH OF THE YOUNG FOXES WILL MAKE A BIG IMPACT NEXT SEASON
LEICESTER City manager Brendan Rodgers has spoken recently about recruiting players with a winning mentality, writes Luke Pawley.
Boubakary Soumaré and Patson Daka are already on their way in, but now it is the academy’s turn to show that their own players can develop such an attitude and earn a future at the club.
City’s under-23s were relegated to Premier League 2 Division Two last season, while the under-18s finished 12th out of 13 teams in the Under-18 Premier League South.
While players’ development is not solely about winning games, the young Foxes hope to have a more successful season on the pitch next season.
Here is a breakdown of the situation with both squads and who to keep your eyes peeled for over the coming months.
THE RELEASED LIST
At the end of last season, the Premier League published their clubs’ retained and released lists for next season, with Leicester releasing nine young players.
Goalkeeper Oliver Bosworth has departed, along with Darnell Johnson and Layton Ndukwu.
The trio came through the academy ranks together and will now look for new clubs after failing to catch the eye of Brendan Rodgers.
Azeem Abdulai, the former Celtic defender who was picked up by the Foxes just last year, was also let go.
The same fate befell fellow defenders Darragh O’Connor, Daniel Obi and Johnly Yfeko.
Striker Dempsey Arlott-John, the brother of former Leicester academy graduates Jorrin John and Kairo Edwards-John, also left the club.
So too has attacking midfielder Johnson Gyamfi, who suffered from injury setbacks throughout his last two years at the club.
INCOMINGS
Leicester City have already been linked with a handful of players who could boost their Development Squad ranks.
Closest to joining the club appears to be 19-year-old Hartlepool United goalkeeper Brad Young, who reportedly has agreed terms on a threeyear deal.
The Athletic have reported that Leicester hold an interest in young Nottingham Forest striker Brennan Johnson, son of former Forest and Ipswich striker David.
Johnson had a successful loan spell at Lincoln City under former Foxes assistant Michael Appleton last season, and his father knows Leicester well, having worked as the club’s Head of 17-23 Recruitment from 2015 to 2016.
However, should Johnson be signed, the Welsh international would hope to push for a place in the senior squad in a short space of time.
Liverpool midfielder Jack Lewis, 16, has already joined the club, with Manchester United and Wales under-16 winger Chris Popov set to follow suit.
Popov’s Manchester United teammate Jahmari Lindsay, a left-back, signed for Leicester earlier this year.
Another name heavily linked with Leicester is Ben Grist, a 15-year-old defender who made his senior debut for Grimsby Town under Ian Holloway last season.
CONTRACT TALKS
From last season’s U23s group, Sam Hughes and Sidnei Tavares have been offered new contracts.
Eyebrows were raised when Hughes was offered a new deal, given the 24-year-old has yet to feature for the first team at Leicester City.
The defender has struggled for regular game time at Salford City and Burton Albion during recent loan spells and was expected to depart when his contract expired this summer.
Ninteen-year-old Tavares has been offered fresh terms, although the midfielder is subject to interest from clubs across Europe.
Tavares, who is the cousin of former Manchester United winger Nani, has made three appearances for the first team and is a Portugal youth international.
It is understood that Rodgers thinks highly of Tavares and is pushing to convince the teenager to extend his stay at the King Power Stadium, with the promise of firstteam football on the horizon.
From the U18 group, central midfielder Ethan Fitzhugh, wingers Wanya Marcal-Madivadua and Tawanda Maswanhise as well as striker Will Russ have been offered their professional contracts.
If they were to sign, they would link up with Steve Beaglehole’s Development Squad next term.
THE LOAN LIST
Several players will be desperate to go out on loan to get more, or their first, experience of first-team football next season.
At the top of that list is goalkeeper Daniel Iversen, who is reportedly close to rejoining Preston North End on a temporary basis.
Central midfielder Callum Wright, who was at Cheltenham Town for the final five months of last season, will also be looking to gain more senior experience after impressing in League Two.
Josh Eppiah may well be looking for a domestic loan after a spell at OH Leuven in Belgium, while the likes of Jakub Stolarczyk, Khanya Leshabela and Admiral Muskwe may also be candidates for loan moves.
Leicester’s loan players are in good hands, with loans manager Guy Branston, himself a Leicester academy graduate, taking a hands-on approach with players’ loan development and checking in with them regularly.
BRIGHTEST PROSPECTS
When talking about the brightest prospects at Leicester City, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is the name on everybody’s lips.
The Shepshed-born midfielder spent last season on loan at Luton Town, making 40 appearances and winning multiple end-of-season club awards.
Dewsbury-Hall is most likely to break into the first team under Brendan Rodgers next season, although he could go back out on loan to a promotion-chasing Championship team or perhaps a newlypromoted Premier League club.
Other prospects include the aforementioned Tavares, Welsh international midfielder Oli Ewing, who has regularly impressed for the under18s, and 17-year-old tenacious midfielder Sammy Braybrooke.
Ewing is expected to become a regular for the under23s next season, having been training regularly with the squad for some time.
Braybrooke, meanwhile, has already played for the under-23s and has impressed the first-team coaching staff.